


Moonlighting

by MyLittleHime



Category: overwatch
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-27
Packaged: 2018-09-24 05:51:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9705959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyLittleHime/pseuds/MyLittleHime
Summary: Moonlighting-An Overwatch AUA series of drabbles about Jesse McCree in a slightly alternate universe where almost everything is the same except the charming gunslinger is actually a failed Soldier Enhancement prototype in the form of a massive human/wolf/bear hybrid.  Jesse has managed to keep it under control for the most part, with only a few key people knowing about his condition.  Includes actual dragon!Hanzo Shimada-well, I did say almost everything is the same.  Since we are dealing with Were!McCree and Dragon!Hanzo there is slight body horror, but nothing extreme.





	1. Moonlighting

Moonlighting  
An Overwatch AU

 

Jesse McCree was starting to worry about several very important things.

Finding excuses to disappear a few days a month were getting harder to come by, or rather, harder for Hanzo to accept readily. It had been easy at first when they had only started seeing each other, each had their own life and a few days here and there were nothing unusual.

Then their encounters happened more often...and then they became regular and now here he was thinking up new excuses. A job, a mission, another job....and so it went on. How long could it last? Hanzo would figure it out, he was observant and smart and he would put two and two together eventually. He was purposely being avoided at a certain point every month. While he might not figure out the exact reason because it seemed positively ridiculous.

He needed time away because he was a werewolf. Who would believe that? 

It wasn’t the right word, of course. He’d never been bitten and he wasn’t cursed. The form wasn’t even a wolf or a wolf man. It was some kind of wolf,bear and himself combination. Science had made him, just like it had made so many other of the more unusual individuals he’d met. Orphans were a dime a dozen during the Omnic Crisis. He didn’t even remember where they’d found him or even who had found him...only that they were desperate to come up with something...anything to combat the rogue robots.

What they got was a lot of blood on their hands and eventually successful soldier enhancement. Jesse was one of the lucky ones. He could turn it off...most of the time...and he was alive. Four weeks was his record for holding it in. It oddly synced with the full moon. Jesse hadn’t done that intentionally, but it seemed to have stuck. As far as he knew, the results were mixed at best and his particular enhancements weren’t used on any of the actual volunteers from the United States Military. 

He’d managed to escape at some point and he’d ended up with the Deadlock Gang, which as far was he was concerned, was a whole lot better than being dead. It was a lot more profitable, too. If he ever got cornered, he had a way out and it was one that no one would believe if his adversary made it out alive. The Deadlocks were a lot easier to evade. They would get to drinking and gambling and not miss Jesse if he stepped out for a bit. It seemed like he’d finally found a decent balance.

Still...nothing lasted forever and all good things had to come to an end.

 

There was a reason his delinquent teenage self hadn’t ended up in prison after the Overwatch sting. It was the same one that landed him in Blackwatch...why Reyes had personally taken him under his wing. The folks behind the Soldier Enhancement Division had some skeletons in their closet that had come to light and someone had to keep a handle on things. For a time, Reyes was that person and for a time, Jesse was happy to feel needed, appreciated...and accepted...like he really was making the world a better place...but once again...all good things.

McCree had been on his own for six or seven years now. Thankfully, he’d wanted out and gotten out before the organization went to hell. In what was possibly the last good thing Reyes had ever done, he’d vouched for him when he asked to be discharged. Said he wasn’t a liability anymore, that they’d gotten everything under control. It wasn’t a total lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth, either. It wasn’t a bad deal. He even got to keep the cybernetic replacement arm he had been fitted with for service.

Since then, Jesse had been working as a mercenary, mostly working as a body guard and personal security. It allowed a good amount of anonymity. Cash only. In and out. Wham, Bam, Thank You, Ma’am. 

That’s how he’d originally crossed paths with the former crime lord, Hanzo Shimada. He’d been working for a...business associate of the mysterious archer and he’d definitely caught the scent of something unusual. He couldn’t put an exact finger on it, but the Japanese man’s distinct scent was not unlike his own. The was the unique human signature with something else under it. He’d naturally been intrigued and he’d noticed that Shimada had been crossing his path more and more frequently and he’d been enjoying the company. Jesse had never been anyone’s steady anything and their...liaisons were getting more and more personal. It was bittersweet, really. It was only a matter of time before Hanzo found out. McCree had cancelled two of their meetings and rescheduled them over the last two months and he was almost positive that Hanzo was picking the same weeks on purpose now. 

But he didn’t want this good thing to end just yet!

Jesse counted himself lucky that at the last minute, someone with a very large wallet had hired him to house sit for the weekend in a rather fine estate outside of Kyoto. It was a strange request, but it seemed like easy money for a mercenary. He didn’t have to fight anyone or stop any train robberies...it was just him and a house for the weekend and he wasn’t about to argue. It was the perfect job. The home obviously belonged to old money. There were pieces of art in every room, from scrolls to vases to statues, all carrying a dragon motif. Hanzo would love this place. He’d have to tell him about it on Monday when they met up in Hanamura. Maybe the house belonged to someone famous, a celebrity or something?

It was really peaceful out here in the middle of nowhere. The only sounds were from crickets and the occasional splash from a frog or a fish in a nearby lake. McCree sighed stripping off his effects piece by piece until he was down to just a pair of old Blackwatch pants. He’d held onto them since they were made especially for him to accommodate his enhancements. Jesse took a deep breath. No time like the present to get unpleasant business finished. His cybernetic arm was about to look very out of place.

He walked away from the house and into its massive backyard toward the lakeshore. The gentle lapping of the water and the sand and the occasional cry of an owl was the only thing he could hear. He settled down on the grass and took a few deep, purposeful breathes.

Alright then. On with it.

It wasn’t obvious from the outside, but McCree could feel the shift start. The burning heat on his skin, the dull ache in his bones as they prepared to stretch and the irritation on his skin that would momentarily sprout rusty fur.

“Mind if I join you?”

McCree’s heard skipped a beat at that voice. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise and the pit of his stomach felt like it fell through the floor? How could he have missed Hanzo’s approach? He should have smelled him a mile away with that distinctive scent of his! No...no he couldn’t be here...he’d already started....

“What are you doing here? You are supposed to be in Hanamura!” 

Try as he might, McCree couldn’t hide the desperation in his voice. He held his flesh hand behind his back, the nails had already darkened and grown into claws. 

Hanzo shrugged.

“I live here, well, sometimes. This is our summer estate. There’s not another soul for miles. Its just us. I’m the one who hired you to house sit...and I’m going to do it with you.”

Jesse McCree felt as though the world was falling out from under him and Hanzo was just chatting like nothing was wrong. 

“Hanzo. You...you have to go. You can’t be here.”

McCree’s hear thudded in his chest, this was an absolute disaster! He could feel the pressure mounting harder in his bones. Muscles were already starting to swell. Shit! Had his eyes changed color yet? They were always early on...morphing from a soft brown to striking yellow.

Hanzo seemed oblivious to Jesse’s panic, remaining infuriatingly calm. 

 

“You don’t want me to know your secret. I know. Jesse McCree, did you not think I could smell what you were from the moment I met you? Given that nose of yours, you have to know that we have something very personal in common. It’s rare to find a kindred spirit. You probably know that as well as I do. I noticed your pattern and thought I might be of some assistance.”

McCree felt his heart clench, not hearing a lot of what Hanzo said, admittedly. He knew. Hanzo knew. If he did then why was he still here? Why was he wasting his time?

 

“Jesse, we’re the same. You don’t have to hide from me.”

 

“It ain’t the same, Hanzo. It isn’t...it isn’t natural.” McCree paused, visibly starting to sweat. 

The archer raised an eyebrow. 

“So...generations of selective breeding and special training is somehow more ‘natural?’ Please. You’ll forgive me if I find that hard to believe, speaking from experience.”

“Yeah, well, speaking from my experience it is really different. It ain’t alike at all. You...you don’t have to....”

“But I want to.”

The archer blinked slowly and McCree could see the stirring of something other in his eyes. Tiny flecks of gold appeared in Hanzo’s irises, expanding until their usual color was replaced with a metallic sheen. Patches of skin darkened and glistened in the moonlight as they turned into rich, blue scales that freckled the archer’s body. A pair of elegant antlers peeked out from between spikes of Hanzo’s hair.

“It will be something of an adventure, don’t you think? When my brother and I were children, our father began to teach us how to control the spirit dragons...but, he also taught us who we were. Who we really were. You’re the first person outside my immediate family to even know. That’s some very intimate knowledge, wouldn’t you say? I can’t imagine you’ve actually had any time to actually enjoy your shifting.”

Well, that was putting it mildly.

That intoxicating smell that always seemed to linger around Hanzo became stronger. It filled McCree’s nostrils and the creature inside him felt like it was clawing to get out. Hanzo’s shifting was so different. It seemed to flow, little bits and pieces of the dragon within seemed to materialize. It was like watching one of those changing pictures in a pretend haunted house. One minute a human trait was there, the next, a draconic one replaced it. McCree couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy. His shifting was always so chaotic. 

It felt rude to stare. Jesse felt like he was watching something perhaps a little too personal and looked at the ground, chewing on his lower lip. How did Hanzo make it look so damn effortless?

Jesse felt something cup the side of his now shaggy cheek and gently steer his gaze back. He blinked to the side and saw that it wasn’t a hand, but rather a blue scaled talon that somehow held him so supportively. 

“I see that look. You think it was easy for me? You think my first changes weren’t frightening and painful? That I just started out having control? No.”

Hanzo shook his head.

“It took practice, Jesse McCree. Years of it. Over time, it became like breathing. It can be that way for you, too.”

McCree tried to find words, anything, but nothing was coming to him. His throat was tight and he didn’t think he could manage to speak without starting to cry and sakes alive, that was not something he wanted to do in front of Hanzo Shimada over nothing. So instead, he screwed his eyes shut.

It was true, though. He didn’t have practice. He’d never wanted practice. He’d wanted to rush it, get it over with. There was nothing elegant about it. It was something he had to do, not something he wanted to do. Truth be told...he hated it.

He hated that this was forced on him, that he had to hide it, that it hurt and that it was something he had to live with when he’d never asked for it in the first place. Reyes...Morrison...they’d volunteered and from where he was standing, their perfected formulas for soldier enhancement spat in his face. There was nothing anyone could do about it. They couldn’t turn if off, they couldn’t take it out. It had been a part of him for too long.

“H-Hanzo, I can’t stop it.”

He shoved the talon away from his face and fell to his knees.

The anger fueled his transformation then, thick, rusty fur sprouted all over his body, his feet distended to resemble a wolf’s hind legs. His back swelled with raw muscle, too heavy to stand fully upright without a definite slouch. Jesse’s nose darkened and his face pushed out into a muzzle, some sharp teeth curled his lips back like tusks. 

Let Hanzo see, then. Let him see how wrong he was and this could be another good thing that could end right now and at least there wouldn’t be any more waiting around for the inevitable.

When McCree opened his eyes, there was a large, blue dragon waiting for him in Hanzo’s place. It smelled like Hanzo and held itself like him. The dragon gently leaned forward and pressed its forehead against Jesse’s. 

“Neither of us chose this. It is what we are. We have to make it our own.” 

McCree started. The voice, though altered and different, was unmistakably Hanzo Shimada’s. Jesus, he was even beautiful completely transformed. It was strangely calming...comforting even to see someone else completely transformed and here at his side. Thankful, he pressed back against Hanzo’s forehead. The dragon rumbled pleasantly and wrapped his long body around Jesse comfortingly. 

It was too much.

McCree really did cry then. The fur on his face was wet and his breathing was a series of loud chuffs. He leaned into every bit of the dragon he could, his mechanical fingers digging into Hanzo’s mane and holding it fiercely. He needed it. He just needed to be here with someone like himself...but not like himself. He had to say something. Anything. All he could manage was...

“Don’t go.”

Hanzo’s lips curled back in a knowing smile.

“Never.” 

After a few long minutes, McCree managed to pull himself together.

In a voice made rough and ragged by the change, McCree nonetheless sounded cheerful. 

“This is really a lovely place you’ve got here. I might fancy dropping by again. Same time next month? I...think I could use a few of your pointers,”


	2. Moonlighting-Pup

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moonlighting-Pup  
> Chapter 2 is a Flashback to when Jesse McCree was picked up by Overwatch in a sting operation. While being held in a medical cell, he encounters Gabriel Reyes for the first time, a man who he will consider a surrogate father and a dear friend over the next few decades.

Moonlighting- Pup

 

“Is that him, Angela?”

Gabriel Reyes peered through the slim glass slot in the door at the prisoner inside the cell. The young had himself pushed into the farthest possible corner, back to the wall and knees drawn up to his face. Two intense blue grey eyes stared out from under shaggy, rust colored bangs. Truth be told, he didn’t look like the sort who would be able to land a few agents in the hospital. 

“Yes. Will you speak to him? He won’t talk to any of us without trying to tear our throats out. He’s been told he’s going to prison if he doesn’t talk to us,” Angela sighed, brushing some loose hair behind her ear.

“Sure. I’ve got nothing better-”

Angela wrung her hands.

“ No...it isn’t...Gabriel, they want to take him to Development. I...as a doctor I can’t in good conscience clear him for that. I could...I would clear him to work with you. They’ll listen to you.”

She was clearly shaken, but ever the dedicated physician, she was still thinking about her patient’s quality of life. Gabriel admired that about her. She was risking a lot, asking him for such a favor, but there had to be a good reason. One of the greatest medical minds in the whole of Overwatch didn’t ask you to babysit for nothing. Besides, what would Development want with a delinquent teen from Route 66?

 

“Development? Angela, what is this?”

Angela took a deep breath and swallowed.

“Gene therapy. It isn’t like anything I’ve ever seen before in civilian work. It hasn’t even been found in medical testing.”

“Gene therapy? Angela, what am I walking into, here?”

“Whatever was done to him-he...he can trigger a physical transformation. The resulting creature is very aggressive. Be Careful.”

Well, that explained a lot of things. Why multiple agents had been hospitalized and why weapons development wanted to get their hands on him. Gene therapy? How? By who? What had this kid been through? Was there anything even left of him? Well, there was only one way to find out.

 

“Kill the audio and lock the door. I’ll go try to talk some sense into him. I don’t want him getting loose in here.”

Angela nodded, typing commands into the security system and unlocking the door just long enough for Gabriel to get inside. He heard the latching mechanism slide shut behind him with an ominous, solid clank.

Gabriel looked to the corner. The boy had not moved. His back was sill pressed into the corner and steely, blue grey eyes had locked onto the agent through a curtain of shaggy, rust colored hair.

“Hey. You alright? Feeling better? Sorry they roughed you up...I...I don’t think they knew you were a kid.”

The only thing Gabriel got in return was silence. Alright. Time to try something else. He took a few steps forward, only to be met with a growl. Well, at least that was a response. Gabriel stopped in his tracks and held up his hands, revealing that had nothing in his hands before he took a few more steps, placing himself in the center of the room and easing down to a crouch so that he could be eye to eye with the boy in the corner.

“You can relax. I’m not a cop. My name is Gabriel Reyes. I work with Overwatch. I’m not going to lock you up or anything like that.”

He saw those steely eyes dart to the door, then back to himself.

“That’s my friend, Dr. Ziegler. She’d like to have a look at you and make sure you’re okay. She tells me you’re a little...uncooperative. You’ve got spunk, kid. We like that. What’s your name?”

The boy pulled in on himself and started visibly trembling.

“Kid?” Gabriel asked.

There was no reply, but there was a definite gleam of sweat on what visible skin the boy had and part of that mop of hair was looking damp. Gabriel got to his feet and stepped closer to the shaking form in the corner.

He hadn’t noticed before but the kid was missing an arm. The way he had been sitting had completely concealed the fact that his left arm ended right above the elbow. 

Jesus. What had this kid been through?

Gabriel was jolted from his thought by a series of sickening cracks. The boy’s body had started swelling, legs and arm twisting, patches of rusty fur were popping up all over him until that same shaggy fur covered his slim form. The boy stopped shaking then and stood up-no longer a boy at all, but a gangly legged cross between a wolf and a bear. It seemed the form was going through puberty, too. It was clearly awkward and missing a leg wasn’t helpful now that it was not able to stand straight up. With a deep throated growl, it leapt at Gabriel, clearly making a grab for the agent’s arm. 

Shit. Well, Angela did say it was aggressive.

“Don’t do it kid, you’ll only hurt yourself.”

The rusty furred creature lunged at Reyes, snapping its jaws and finding purchase on the man’s forearm. As soon as teeth punctured skin, a black mist rose up from the would and lashed out, slashing the top of the creature’s mouth. With a yelp pain, the beast let him go and jumped back, tail literally between its legs. It left a splattered trail of blood back to its corner where it huddled, whimpering.

Gabriel gritted his teeth as his flesh knitted itself back together. Those puncture wounds were deep. Little punk hadn’t been messing around.

“I warned you, kid.” 

He reached into a pouch on his hip and pulled out a roll of bandages. It wasn’t perfect, but it was enough for now. Gabriel put a hand on the ball of fur that was doing its best to push itself into its corner. It tensed under his touch, as if expecting a blow. Instead, it felt a hand rub gently through its fur.

“Hey, now. Its okay. I’m not mad. Here. Bite down on this. It will stop the bleeding.”

The beast did as it was told, not making eye contact. When the bleeding had stopped and things had quieted down, Gabriel felt a shudder under his hand. Bit by bit, the animalistic features began to recede and the boy’s humanity became more apparent. The agent averted his eyes until it was done. He didn’t want to be a voyeur.

The boy finally sat up, removing the bloodied ball of bandages from his mouth.

“As I was saying. I don’t want you to rot in a prison cell. You could do some real good in the world. Doesn’t that sound better?”

“NO!”

It was the first actual word Gabriel had heard the boy say. It was clear and emphatic. Gabriel blinked. Yes, he was listening.  
“I don’t want to use it like that! I don’t want to use it at all. I don’t want anyone to know! Not ever again!”

Oh.

Gabriel placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder.

“That’s not what I was talking about. I was talking about you, not your special talent. No one has to know. You don’t have to use it. It is yours. You can do what you want with it...within reason. The staff doesn’t take kindly to bites.”

The boy sniffed.

“Sorry. You Okay, Mr. Reyes?”

Now that he was speaking, it was clear the boy had a southwestern drawl. “Mr. Reyes”? A few minutes ago, the kid had tried to tear his arm off.

“Yeah. It takes a lot more than a scared patient to hurt me.”

He pulled up his sleeve, revealing his almost fully healed arm. Only a few minor discolorations remained where sharp teeth had dug into his flesh.

“See, Kid? Good as new.”

The boy’s eyes widened.

“So....I could use some help making the world a better place. It is a lot more fun than being locked in a cell all day.”

“O-Okay. Sir.”

Sir? Now he was a Sir? Gabriel was clearly moving up in the world.

“What’s your name? I don’t think I caught it the first time.”

There was a pause before Gabriel received an answer.

“Jesse. Jesse McCree.”

Gabriel squeezed Jesse’s shoulder.

“Good to know you, Jesse McCree.”

Angela hadn’t been kidding. This wasn’t like anything he had ever dealt with before, this was a teenager, a young teenager...maybe 14? He was younger than anyone else on the team and would clearly need a lot of extra handling given his nature, but...but Angela was right. This kid-Jesse- he could not be sent off to Development. That wasn’t what he needed. What he needed was for lack of a better term, a pack, to keep him out of trouble...and out of trouble’s hands.

Just where had this kid come from, anyway?


	3. Moonlighting-Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In Chapter 3, Jesse gets a visit from an important fatherly figure from his past who has an unforeseen proposition.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaand please enjoy some fluffy Dad!Reaper and Son!McCree. I hope to do some additional flashback chapters with a young Jesse because the father/son dynamic with these two gives me life.

Moonlighting-Reunion

By Mylittlehime

 

The Shimada Summer House looked like a home out of time. Sitting beside a tranquil lake, it was the classical image of quiet, isolated sanctuary. It had been home to the family for generations for good reason. There were few places a family of dragons could go and remain undisturbed. Given the misty evening, combined with the steam rising off the lake, the house looked every part the mystical abode. Crickets chirped and clouds covered the moon. There was a flicker of movement on the water as a dark smoke moved across the surface of the water and onto the beach before slipping through an open back door. The only indication of its arrival was a small jingle from a windchime.

Jesse McCree sat on the tatami floor at a low table. He flipped casually through a newspaper. He couldn’t read most of it due to the sheer number of unfamiliar characters, but it was fun to look for familiar faces. Hanzo had been called out on some last minute business and he was alone in the house.

Or at least he had been.

His sensitive sense of smell picked up a very distinct smell of burning ozone, gunpowder and a hint of patchouli. He’d know that combination of scents anywhere and it made his heart skip a beat and the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. 

The Reaper.

Jesse hadn’t actually seen Gabriel Reyes in at least six years...but he’d heard enough stories to know this probably wasn’t a social call. Truth be told, he’d been expecting it. Dreading it was probably a better word. His mentor had seemingly come back from the dead with a vendetta and had been picking off former Overwatch agents one by one. Jesse didn’t know why or how those unlucky bastards had ended up on the wrong side of the former Blackwatch Commander, but it was definitely no place to be. 

It stung inside, knowing that someone who was once so dear to him was now stalking him like a tiger about to pounce. 

Jesse swallowed and stood up as quickly and silently as he could. He retrieved the Peacekeeper from his bag. Carefully, he crept through the house, going from room to room. Bit by bit, the smell got stronger until McCree reached a large sitting room. His flared nostrils filled with the burning, smokey smell.

 

“Jesse McCree. You’re a sight for sore eyes, Pup. I knew you’d sniff me out in no time at all.”

 

“Pup.” Now there was a name he hadn’t been called in awhile. The voice was definitely Reyes’, but with an overlay of metallic distortion that hadn’t been there before. The affectionate term caused a confused flurry of nostalgia and fondness combined with the elevated sense of anxious tension that held Jesse’s heart. The gunslinger’s heart pounded a little faster now that he’d actually seemingly found the intruder.

There was no attack, no sucker punch...nothing.

 

“Take it easy. I’m not here to fight, Pup, I’m here to talk business.”

Jesse stepped into the room that was mostly dark, save for a burning candle on a small table next to a large Western style chair and ottoman set. That was exactly where The Reaper was sitting in with his feet up. He gestured towards the ottoman. A matching pair of Hellfire Shotguns rested beside his boots. Jesse sighed and lowered the Peacekeeper, not yet returning it to its holster. He narrowed his eyes.

“What kind of business does a dead man want me for?”

There was a dry, metallic chuckle from the masked man in the chair.

“I think you’ll find rumors of my demise to be greatly exaggerated...several times over, it would seem. You’re looking well. Make some new friends?”

McCree didn’t answer. He didn’t take his eyes off of the intruder, either. 

There was a measured pause from Reaper. He deliberately reached into his coat and pulled out a portable data pad. Metal tipped fingers punched in a series of codes. After several clearance screens, a stylized purple skull flickered onto it surface before disappearing. Instead, the screen now there was a picture of himself and Hanzo splashing in the lake...of course, it wasn’t either of them looking human. It was from a month ago during a particularly humid night. Fur was unbearable in the heat and his draconic companion had suggested swimming which turned into flirting and playing. It had been fun. He’d never referred to anything involving his monthly transformations as “fun” but this had been. A dragon and a wolf beast made an interesting pair. It seemed ridiculous now that he thought about it. Two great monsters splashing about like children. Still, now Jesse felt like he’d somehow been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“Looks like you’ve been busy, too. Huh. I did not know you could smile in that form. It looks good on you. I hope you do it more. Glad you found someone who could make you.”

Breaking and entering and now flattery? What game was Reyes playing at with him? Despite the metallic growl that was his voice, Reaper sounded honest. 

“Where did you get that?” The gunslinger tried hard not to let himself sound exposed and vulnerable, but it was obvious the visitor had hit a sensitive spot.

“You’re not the only one who has made some new friends, Pup. Which is what brings me here. You see, the monkey thought I didn’t get any of his precious agent locations. I got the ones that mattered. The rest will all crawl out of the woodwork soon enough. Case in point.”

The image of himself and Hanzo vanished and a picture of an old man appeared.

“You recognize him? He was part of the Soldier Enhancement Project. He hand picked a lot of the prototypes from areas hit hard in the first Omnic Crisis. Hand picked a lot of orphans with no one to miss them. He went around to crisis centers and shelters...found himself some qualified specimens. Never charged with anything given multiple medals for valor and contribution to science.”

There was no mistaking the venom in that metallic hiss.

“You want in on taking this guy out?”

The revelation as to why Reyes had actually sought him out hit Jesse like a ton of bricks. His mentor had not come to kill him, but rather invite him on some kind of vengeance mission? This...this man had chosen him...for....Jesse needed to sit down. It was overwhelming-first to have an unannounced visitor with questionable intentions, then to be found out, then to find out his mentor was here to invite him on some kind of revenge operation? 

McCree exhaled and carefully made his way over to the opposite chair before easing down.

“So...that’s it then? You aren’t here to kill me. You would have done it already. You aren’t here to extort money from Hanzo, you would have done it already. You just want to know if I want to help you murder someone?”

“Pup, its not a good plan to blackmail a family of dragons. I’ve got no quarrel with the Shimadas. I’m here for you. I wouldn’t say murder. I’d say...exact justice upon. It is personal, I get it. You might want to think about it.”

“No.”

McCree answered without hesitation.

“I ain’t gonna help you with that. I’ve...I’ve got a lot of good going on right now.”

The man in the mask paused and cocked his head to the side. Jesse could feel eyes on him, practically burning holes in the gunslinger.  
“No? No you just want to let this man who destroyed hundreds of lives-your life-to just love out his days on a sweet pension in a beachside villa? That’s alright with you?”

Gabriel’s voice became even more sharp and metallic when he was upset. McCree suddenly found it very hard to meet the masked man’s gaze...or the approximation of it.

“No. It ain’t alright...but I...I can’t risk losing what I’ve got. Not again. I’ve picked up the pieces enough. I just...I finally got something else good going on. It is the first time since we worked together that I’ve actually given a shit about keeping anything together.”

Jesse rubbed his temples.

“Look, I’m sorry, I really am. I’m...I’m glad you came. I’m glad you aren’t here to fight. I’m happy to see you....but...but I can’t go with you. I won’t get in your way. I won’t tell anyone what you’re up to....but...but I just can’t go with you.”

A part of him desperately wanted to. Another mission with Gabriel Reyes? A dream come true. More time with the man who had practically adopted him and given his life a purpose worth a damn? McCree would be lying if he said he hadn’t fantasized about it. Who wouldn‘t want a last hurrah with their idol? Still...still...he could not bring himself to do it. Not this time. Shit, why couldn’t it be for something else? Why couldn’t he have shown up sooner? 

Reaper nodded and made an affirming grunt.

“I can’t say that I blame you, Pup. I get it.”

Jesse started at that. 

“You do?”

The gunslinger didn’t sound entirely convinced.

“Sure. You’ve moved on. You’ve gotten something together that you want. That’s good. That’s exactly what I’d hoped you’d do when you left. From the start, actually. I’m glad it worked out.” 

The older man stood up and retrieved his shotguns, stowing them somewhere in the depths of his coat.

“I’ve got to get going. Places to go and all that. We’ll have to catch up properly at some point. In the meantime, take care of yourself, Pup.”

Jesse nodded, getting to his feet. He should say something. So much had gone unsaid for years. He wasn’t even sure how the Commander had actually felt until now.

“I...I....”

The older man paused. If Jesse was going to say something, he’d better do it. The Reaper was just as impatient as he remembered Gabriel being.

“I love you,” Jesse finally managed.

There. He’d managed to get it out. He’d never been able to get it out before, but he needed to. It had been true for two decades now. Gabriel had been the father he never had-or rather, couldn’t remember having. His cheeks burned, probably noticeable even in the dim light of the candlelit room. 

“You took me in when you didn’t have to. You could have used me like a weapon like they wanted, but you didn’t. You sat up with me, made sure I got out often enough that I didn’t have any...any accidents around anyone else. You made it so that only you and Angela knew...and you kept it that way. You...you were always looking out for me and...even at the end...I...I just wanted you to know that I appreciate it...Comm-”

Jesse stopped himself. No, he hadn’t been his commander in years...and yet Gabriel felt far to informal for what this man was to him. Reaper wasn’t right either because that’s not who this man was at all, not to Jesse.

A heavy gauntleted hand rested on the gunslinger’s shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. It just seemed to materialize there, along with the rest of Reyes. Before Jesse knew what was happening, he was pulled into a hug and he buried his face in Gabriel’s shoulder and inhaled deeply. The other man’s scent was exactly as he remembered it. A smokey, ozone smell, covered in patchouli. It was comforting and nostalgic. It made him feel safe, just like the hug. He’d been carried to safety in those arms, he’d been laid down in his bed in his room....and it was such an emotional relief to know that this man was not his enemy. Not now, not ever.

Jesse returned the hug with his remaining hand, fingers gripping at Gabriel’s coat. He couldn’t help himself, he started crying. 

“S-sorry about this-making a scene isn’t befittin’ me.”

“Shhhhhhh. You’re fine.”

Jesse felt a hand gently pat his back.

“I know it’s been hard for you, Pup. You were never a bother. I wanted to help you. You always made me proud. Keep that up. I’ll be in touch.” 

Without another word, Gabriel seemed to dissolve in his grip, shifting into a familiar cloud of dark smoke that ghosted across the floor and out the window, leaving little evidence it had ever been there in the first place other than a faint hint of smoke and patchouli. Even that was quickly being blown away by the summer evening breeze.

 

Jesse sniffed and wiped a tear from his eye.

“Yeah. See ya later, Dad.”


End file.
